Electronic component cooling apparatus

ABSTRACT

An electronic component cooling apparatus comprises a so-called water-cooled heat sink, a radiator to be cooled by a motor-driven fan, first and second coolant paths for circulating a coolant between the heat sink and the radiator, and a motor-driven pump for giving a moving energy to the coolant. A plurality of engaging pieces of the motor-driven fan and a plurality of engaged portion of the radiator are engaged to connect the motor-driven fan and the radiator.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an electronic component coolingapparatus for forcibly cooling electronic components such asmicrocomputers and to a motor-driven pump and a radiator used in theelectronic component cooling apparatus.

Most of conventional electronic component cooling apparatuses, asdisclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,519,574, have a combination of a heat sinkhaving a plurality of radiation fins on a surface of a base plate and amotor-driven fan for forcibly cooling these fins and the surface of thebase plate.

As an amount of heat generated by electronic components increases,however, a problem arises that simply air-cooling the heat sink cannotcool the electronic components down to a sufficient degree.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The prevent invention has been made to solve the problems describedabove. Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide anelectronic component cooling apparatus that can cool electroniccomponents generating a large amount of heat down to a sufficient levelby means of so-called water-cooling.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a smallwater-cooling type electronic component cooling apparatus.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide anelectronic component cooling apparatus that allows a motor-driven fan tobe easily mounted at a radiator.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an electroniccomponent cooling apparatus in which noise produced by the motor-drivenfan mounted on the radiator is small.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an electroniccomponent cooling apparatus having a motor-driven fan with a highair-blowing performance.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide anelectronic component cooling apparatus having a water-cooling type heatsink with a higher heat dissipation factor.

A yet further object of the present invention is to provide amotor-driven pump suited for use in the electronic component coolingapparatus.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide amotor-driven pump which is smaller than conventional pumps and capableof suppressing a temperature rise in a bearing and which does notrequire resupply of a lubricant to the bearing.

It is a still further object of the present invention to provide amotor-driven pump capable of supplying a coolant into a bearing holderreliably and smoothly.

It is a still further object of the present invention to provide amotor-driven pump capable of supplying the coolant reliably into arotating body.

It is a still further object of the present invention to provide amotor-driven pump with an improved pump performance without increasing adimension in an axial direction.

It is a still further object of the present invention to provide amotor-driven pump capable of using ball bearings as the bearingstherefor.

It is a still further object of the present invention to provide amotor-driven pump which is small in size and has a high coolingperformance.

It is a yet further object of the present invention to provide aradiator suited for use in the electronic component cooling apparatus.

It is a yet further object of the present invention to provide aradiator which is small in size and has a high heat exchange efficiency.

It is a yet further object of the present invention to provide aradiator which can prevent a degradation of the cooling performancecaused by bubbles getting into a coolant.

An electronic component cooling apparatus of the present invention has aso-called water-cooled heat sink, a radiator cooled by a motor-drivenfan, first and second coolant paths for circulating a coolant betweenthe heat sink and the radiator, and a motor-driven pump for giving amoving energy to the coolant.

The heat sink has an electronic component mounting surface on whichelectronic components to be cooled, such as a CPU, are mounted and acoolant path which has a coolant inlet and a coolant outlet and throughwhich a liquid as a coolant for forcibly cooling the electroniccomponent mounting surface flows. The radiator has a liquid path with acoolant inlet and a coolant outlet, through which a coolant flows andwhich is air-cooled to cool the coolant. The motor-driven fan is mountedon a heat dissipating portion of the radiator to supply cooling air tothe radiator. A first coolant path constructed of, for example, pipingconnects the coolant outlet of the heat sink to the coolant inlet of theradiator, and a second coolant path joins the coolant outlet of theradiator to the coolant inlet of the heat sink. The motor-driven pump isinstalled in the first coolant path or the second coolant path to give amoving energy to the coolant.

In this construction, even when a large amount of heat is generated fromthe electronic components, the heat sink can be positively cooled withthe coolant, thus enhancing the cooling performance much better thanwhen the heat sink is cooled only by air.

The motor-driven fan includes: an air channel body having a suction portat one end thereof facing a front of the heat dissipating portion of theradiator and a discharge port at the other end thereof; an impellerhaving a plurality of blades, at least a part of the impeller beingarranged inside the air channel body; a motor for rotating the impellerto draw in air through the suction port and discharge air from thedischarge port; and a plurality of engaging pieces integrally providedto the air channel body. In this case the radiator is provided with aplurality of engaged portions with which the plurality of the engagingpieces engage. It is theoretically possible to cool the radiator byblowing air against the heat dissipating portion of the radiator.However, the heat dissipating portion of the radiator is complex inshape and has a large resistance against the air being blown. Hence, itis required for enhancing the cooling efficiency to increase therevolution speed of the motor-driven fan, which in turn generates morenoise. On the other hand, a construction in which the motor-driven fandraws in air through the heat dissipating portion of the radiator candischarge heated air from the heat dissipating portion withoutincreasing the rotation speed of the motor-driven fan more thannecessary even when the construction of the heat dissipating portion ofthe radiator is complex. This construction can also reduce noise.Further, if a construction is employed in which the motor-driven fan ismounted at the radiator by engaging the engaging pieces into the engagedportions, the mounting of the motor-driven fan onto the radiator issimplified, thereby enhancing the assembly work efficiency.

Further, if the edges of a plurality of blades facing the front of theheat dissipating portion are sloping gradually away from the dissipatingportion as each of the edges extends in a radially outward directionfrom the rotating center of the impeller, noise can be reduced. Further,if a plurality of webs connecting the housing of the motor and the endportion of the air channel body on the side of the discharge port aresituated outside the discharge port, or the end portion on the side ofthe discharge port is arranged lower than the uppermost surface of thehousing of the motor, the air discharge performance can be increased andthe load noise can be decreased, compared to when the webs are arrangedinside the end portion of the discharge port side of the air channelbody.

The heat sink includes: a base plate having the electronic componentmounting surface and a heat dissipating surface which is opposite to theelectronic component mounting surface in a thickness direction of thebase plate and in direct contact with the coolant; a top plate facingthe base plate with a predetermined space therebetween; and a peripheralwall portion joining the base plate and the top plate. This heat sink ispreferably provided with a coolant inlet and a coolant outlet so thatthe coolant can flow from one side of the heat dissipating surface tothe other side of the heat dissipating surface facing the one side. Itis also preferred that the base plate be so shaped in a transverse crosssection as to form a resistance increasing portion between the one sideand the other side of the heat dissipating surface to increase aresistance against a flow of the coolant. This arrangement causes thecoolant that has entered from the coolant inlet into the heat sink to beaccelerated in velocity at the resistance increasing portion beforebeing discharged from the coolant outlet. As a result, the heat exchangeefficiency can be increased at the resistance increasing portion, whichin turn enhances the overall heat exchange efficiency of the heat sink.

A plurality of radiation fins may be integrally provided on the heatdissipating surface of the base plate of the heat sink to enhance theheat exchange efficiency. In that case, the radiation fins preferablyextend in a first direction from one side where the coolant inlet issituated toward the other side where the coolant outlet is situated. Itis also preferred that the radiation fins be arranged along the heatdissipating surface at predetermined intervals in a second directionperpendicular to the first direction. With the radiation fins arrangedin this manner, an efficient heat exchange can be realized by thecoolant flowing through passages continuously formed between twoadjacent radiation fins. In this case, it is preferred that the coolantinlet and the coolant outlet pierce through the top plate in a thicknessdirection thereof at positions near the one side and the other side,respectively. With this arrangement, the coolant that has entered fromthe coolant inlet flows against the heat dissipating surface anddiffuses, without extreme imbalance, into a space between the top plateand the base plate. The diffused coolant gathers again toward thecoolant outlet and goes out therefrom without imbalance. As a result,the entire heat sink is cooled. In this case, it is preferred that thepositions of both ends of the radiation fins in the first direction bedetermined so that the speed of the coolant does not vary excessivelygreatly among flow passages as the coolant flows in through the coolantinlet and flows out from the coolant outlet through the flow passageseach formed between two adjacent radiation fins.

The electronic component cooling apparatus of the present invention mayuse a variety of motor-driven pumps. The inventor of this inventioninvented a small motor-driven pump suited for use with the electroniccomponent cooling apparatus. The small motor-driven pump comprises: arotor having a rotating body, a plurality of rotary side magnetic polesand a shaft. The rotating body has a cylindrical peripheral wall portionand a closing wall portion integrally formed with the peripheral wallportion to close one end of an inner space enclosed by the peripheralwall portion. The rotary side magnetic poles are formed with permanentmagnets and arranged on an inner peripheral surface of the peripheralwall portion. The shaft is fixed at one end thereof to a center of theclosing wall portion and extends through a center of the peripheral wallportion. The motor-driven pump also comprises bearings for rotatablysupporting the shaft; a cylindrical bearing holder in which the bearingsare fitted and held; a retainer mechanism arranged between the other endof the shaft and one of the two bearings which is situated far side fromthe closing wall portion and adapted to prevent the shaft from comingoff; a stator having a stator core mounted on an outer periphery of thebearing holder and arranged inside the rotating body and a plurality ofexcitation coils wound around the stator core; an exciting currentsupply circuit for supplying an exciting current to the plurality ofexcitation coils; and a waterproof structure including a seal member forwatertightly closing one of open ends of the bearing holder which doesnot face the closing wall portion of the rotating body. The waterproofstructure is adapted to waterproof the stator and the exciting currentsupply circuit. The motor-driven pump also comprises an impeller havinga blade mounting portion arranged on at least the closing wall portionof the rotating body and a plurality of blades provided at the blademounting portion; and a housing having a liquid inlet and a liquidoutlet and accommodating therein elements such as the rotor, theimpeller and the stator. When the rotor, the impeller and the bearingsare submerged in the coolant and the impeller is rotated, the housingdraws in the liquid coolant from the liquid inlet and discharges it fromthe liquid outlet.

In the construction of this motor-driven pump, the stator core issituated on the outer periphery of the bearing holder, with the rotorturning outside the stator core. This construction can reduce the axialdimension of the motor-driven pump and also enhance the pump performanceby taking full advantage of the inertia of the rotor. Further, in thisconstruction, since the liquid enters into the interior of the bearingholder, heat from the stator can also be released through the bearingholder to the liquid flowing through the interior of the pump. Further,because the liquid entering into the bearing holder serves as alubricant for the bearings, there is no need to replenish the lubricantto the bearings, significantly extending the life of the motor-drivenpump. Another advantage of this construction is that since it eliminatesthe need for supplying a lubricant to the bearings, ball bearings can beused as the bearings.

While a single bearing may be used, two bearings are preferably used toensure a stable support of the shaft. In this case, it is preferred thatat least one liquid path extending along the shaft be formed between theinner peripheral surface of the bearing holder and the outer peripheralsurface of the two bearings. This liquid path allows a whole interior ofthe bearing holder, including a space formed between the two bearings inthe bearing holder, to be completely filled with the flowing liquid.This liquid path can be formed by forming at least one groove extendingalong the shaft in at least the inner peripheral surface of the bearingholder or the outer peripheral surface of the bearings. At least onegroove extending along the shaft should preferably be formed in thatpart of the inner peripheral surface of the bearing holder which facesthe outer peripheral surface of the bearings rather than to be formed inthe outer peripheral surface of the bearings, and then ready madebearings can be used. When a plurality of grooves are to be formed, theyare preferably formed at equal intervals in the peripheral direction.This arrangement can eliminate a possibility that the presence of theplurality of grooves may put the center of the bearings out of alignmentwith the center of the bearing holder. Further, the inner peripheralsurface of the bearing holder may be formed with one or more narrowelongate grooves that extend along the shaft and face the outerperipheral surfaces of both of the two bearings. The one or more narrowelongate grooves may be used as the liquid path. This arrangement makesit easy to form the grooves which face both of the bearings.

Further, the closing wall portion of the rotating body may be formedwith one or more through-holes piercing therethrough in a thicknessdirection thereof to allow the coolant to flow through the closing wallportion. The through-holes ensure a smooth flow of the liquid betweenthe interior and the exterior of the rotating body. When the blademounting portion of the impeller has a portion that almost entirelyfaces the closing wall portion of the rotating body, it is necessary toform also in this portion one or more through-holes that are alignedwith the one or more through-holes formed in the closing wall portion.

The blade mounting portion of the impeller may be provided with acylindrical extended mounting portion extending along the peripheralwall portion of the rotating body. Further, the plurality of blades mayeach be shaped to extend continuously from over the blade mountingportion to over the cylindrical extended mounting portion. Thisarrangement can make the most of the outer surface of the rotating bodyin forming long blades, thereby enhancing the performance of themotor-driven pump.

Further, since no shaft fixing brackets exist in the space in which theimpeller rotates, nothing obstructs the liquid inflow, improving thepump performance.

The radiator used in the electronic component cooling apparatus can haveany desired construction as long as it can be formed as small aspossible. The inventor developed a construction suited for such aradiator. This radiator comprises: a plurality of liquid passagesarranged side by side; radiation fins attached to outer surfaces of theliquid passages; two liquid tanks arranged one on each side of theplurality of liquid passages and communicably connected to both ends ofthe plurality of liquid passages; and a liquid inlet and a liquid outletprovided in one and the other of the two liquid tanks respectively.Furthermore, a chamber in each of the two liquid tanks is divided, in adirection of arrangement of the plurality of liquid passages, into mplus one (m is an integer of one or more) sub-chambers by m partitionwalls. Then the sub-chambers in each of the two liquid tanks and theplurality of liquid passages are connected with each other in such amanner that one or more of the liquid passages function as liquid pathswinding between the liquid inlet and the liquid outlet. In thisradiator, since the liquid path is constructed of one or more windingliquid passages, the liquid path can be lengthened and the heat exchangeefficiency enhanced.

The liquid inlet and the liquid outlet can be provided only in one ofthe two liquid tanks. In this construction, the one of the tank providedwith the liquid inlet and outlet therein, in a direction of arrangementof the plurality of liquid passages, is divided into n plus one (n isinteger of two or more) sub-chambers by n partition walls, while theother tank, in a direction of arrangement of the plurality of liquidpassages, is divided into n sub-chambers by n minus one partition walls.In this kind of radiator, since both of the liquid inlet and the liquidoutlet are provided in one of the liquid tanks, a space for locating afirst coolant path and a second coolant path connected respectively tothe liquid inlet and the liquid outlet can be made smaller.

The two liquid tanks can be so arranged that the uppermost sub-chamberin one of the two tanks is situated higher than the uppermostsub-chamber in the other tank. Also, the uppermost sub-chamber of theone tank situated higher than the uppermost sub-chamber of the othertank is formed in such a size and dimension as to allow a space to bedefined therein—that is not filled with the liquid. In this arrangement,bubbles that may get into the liquid stay in the space, therebyeffectively preventing degraded cooling efficiency to be caused when thebubbles get into the liquid.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other objects and many of the attendant advantages of thepresent invention will become better understood by reference to thefollowing detailed description when considered in connection with theaccompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a configuration of an embodiment of anelectronic component cooling apparatus according to the presentinvention.

FIGS. 2A and 2B are a plan view and a side view of a heat sink used inthe electronic component cooling apparatus of FIG. 1. FIG. 2C is across-sectional view taken along the line IIC-IIC of FIG. 2A, and FIG.2D is a plan view of a base plate.

FIGS. 3A and 3B are a plan view and a front view of a motor-driven pumpused in the electronic component cooling apparatus of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line IV-IV of FIG. 3B.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged cross sectional view taken along the line V-V ofFIG. 3B.

FIG. 6A is a cross-sectional view showing another example of amotor-driven pump used in the present invention. FIG. 6B is a horizontalcross-sectional view showing the shaft and surroundings thereof of themotor-driven pump indicated of FIG. 6A.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing still another example of amotor-driven pump used in the present invention.

FIGS. 8A to 8D are a plan view, a front view, a left side view and abottom view of a radiator used in the electronic component coolingapparatus of FIG. 1.

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration of liquid paths ina radiator used in the electronic component cooling apparatus of FIG. 1.

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing another configuration of liquidpaths in a radiator.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram showing a further configuration of liquidpaths in a radiator.

FIGS. 12A to 12D are a plan view, a front view, a left side view and apartly cutaway front view of a motor-driven fan used for air-cooling aradiator used in the electronic component cooling apparatus of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Now, by referring to the accompanying drawings, one embodiment of anelectronic component cooling apparatus according to the presentinvention will be described in detail. FIG. 1 is a plan view showing aconstruction of embodiment of an electronic component cooling apparatus1 according to the present invention. The electronic component coolingapparatus 1 has a water-cooled heat sink 3 having a coolant paththerein, a radiator 7 cooled by a motor-driven fan 5, and a motor-drivenpump 13 for giving a moving energy to the coolant in order to circulatethe coolant between the heat sink 3 and the radiator 7.

The heat sink 3 has an electronic component mounting surface formounting electronic components, such as a CPU, to be cooled. Also theheat sink 3 has a coolant path, with a coolant inlet (a cylindricalmember 35) and a coolant outlet (a cylindrical member 36), through whicha liquid coolant flows to forcibly cool the electronic componentmounting surface. The radiator 7 has a liquid path, with an inlet 80 andan outlet 81, through which the coolant flows and which is air-cooled bydissipating heat from the coolant. The motor-driven fan 5 is mounted ona heat dissipating portion of the radiator 7 to supply cooling air tothe radiator 7. The first coolant path 9 constructed of pipes or othersjoins the coolant outlet 36 of the heat sink 3 to the coolant inlet 80of the radiator 7, and the second coolant path 11 joins the coolantoutlet 81 of the radiator 7 to the coolant inlet 35 of the heat sink 3.

As shown in FIG. 2, the heat sink 3 comprises a base plate 31 and a topplate case 34 and has a coolant path formed therein. The base plate 31is made of a metal with a high heat conductivity, such as copper andaluminum, and has an electronic component mounting surface 31 a, and aheat dissipating surface 31 b which is in direct contact with thecoolant and faces the electronic component mounting surface 31 a in thethickness direction of the base plate. The top plate case 34 has a topplate 32 facing the base plate 31 with a predetermined gap therebetweenand a peripheral wall portion 33 connecting the base plate 31 and thetop plate 32. While the top plate case 34 may be formed of a metal witha high heat conductivity such as copper and aluminum, like a base plate31, it can also be integrally formed of a synthetic resin material. Thetop plate case 34 is integrally formed with a cylindrical member 35constituting the coolant inlet and a cylindrical member 36 constitutingthe coolant outlet. It is preferred that the coolant inlet (thecylindrical member 35) and the coolant outlet (the cylindrical member36) be arranged so that the coolant flows from one side 37 a toward theother side 37 b of the heat dissipating surface 31 b of the base plate31. The base plate 31, when viewed in a transverse cross section, is sodefined that a resistance increasing portion 31 c which increases aresistance against the flow of the coolant is formed between the sides37 a and 37 b of the heat dissipating surface 31 b.

The resistance increasing portion 31 c consists of three portions. Inthe first portion the heat dissipating surface 31 b is formed as aninclined surface 37 d which goes up from a non-inclined surface 37 c atone side 37 a in such a manner that the thickness of the resistanceincreasing portion 31 c gradually increases; in the second portion thatfollows the inclined surface 37 d, the heat dissipating surface 31 b isformed as a non-inclined surface 37 e which extends so that thethickness of the resistance increasing portion 31 c is constant; and inthe third portion following the non-inclined surface 37 e, the heatdissipating surface 31 b is formed as an inclined surface 37 f whichgoes down toward the other side 37 g in such a manner that the thicknessof the resistance increasing portion 31 c gradually decreases. Thisarrangement ensures that the coolant that enters the heat sink 3 fromthe coolant inlet (the cylindrical member 35) is accelerated in velocityat the resistance increasing portion 31 c before being discharged fromthe coolant outlet (the cylindrical member 36). As a result, the heatexchange efficiency can be improved at resistance increasing portion 31c, which in turn enhances the heat exchange efficiency of the heat sink3.

In this example, a plurality of radiation fins 38 are integrallyprovided on the heat dissipating surface 31 b of the base plate 31 inthe heat sink 3 to enhance the heat exchange efficiency. The pluralityof radiation fins 38 each have a plate-like shape and contact with theinner surface of the top plate 32. The plurality of radiation fins 38extend in a first direction (a lateral direction in the drawing) fromthe one side 37 a where the coolant inlet (35) is situated toward theother side 37 b where the coolant outlet (36) is situated, and arearranged along the heat dissipating surface 31 b at predeterminedintervals in a second direction (a vertical direction in the drawing)perpendicular to the first direction. With the radiation fins 38arranged in this manner, an efficient heat exchange can be realized bythe coolant flowing through flow passages 39 continuously formed betweentwo adjacent radiation fins 38, 38. In this case, the coolant inlet (35)and the coolant outlet (36) pierce through the top plate 32 in thethickness direction of the top plate at positions corresponding to thecentral part of each side 37 a, 37 b respectively. With thisarrangement, the coolant that enters at the coolant inlet (35) goesagainst the heat dissipating surface 31 b and diffuses, withoutexcessive imbalance, into a space between the top plate 32 and the baseplate 31. The diffused coolant then gathers evenly toward the coolantoutlet (36) and goes out therefrom. As a result, the entire heat sink 3is cooled. In this example, the positions of the both ends of theradiation fins 38 in the first direction are so determined that the flowspeeds of the coolant do not vary excessively among flow passages 39each formed between two adjacent radiation fins 38, 38 as the coolantflows in through the coolant inlet (35) and flows out of the coolantoutlet (36) through the flow passages 39. The cylindrical member 36 isconnected with one end of a pipe 9 a, for example a metal pipe, formingthe first coolant path 9. The cylindrical member 35 is connected withone end of a pipe 11 a, for instance a metal pipe, forming a part of thesecond coolant path 11. The other end of the pipe 11 a is connected to acylindrical member 148 that forms a liquid outlet of the motor-drivenpump 13. A cylindrical member 147 forming a liquid inlet of themotor-driven pump 13 is connected to a cylindrical member 81 forming aliquid outlet of the radiator 7 through a pipe 11 b, such as a metalpipe forming a part of the second coolant path 11.

The motor-driven pump 13 is installed in the second coolant path 11 togive a moving energy to the coolant. FIG. 3A and FIG. 3B represent aplan view and a front view of the motor-driven pump 13 respectively.FIG. 4 is a cross section taken along the line IV-IV of FIG. 3B. FIG. 5is an enlarged cross section taken along the line V-V of FIG. 3B. Themotor-driven pump 13 has a housing 131. The housing 131 comprises ahousing body 132 of synthetic resin and a cover member 133 of syntheticresin. As shown in FIG. 5, the housing body 132 comprises an outercylindrical portion 135 with open ends, a partition wall portion 136provided inside, and formed integrally with, the outer cylindricalportion 135, and a bottom wall portion 137 fitted to one end (lower end)of the outer cylindrical portion 135 to close that end. The partitionwall portion 136 comprises a first annular portion 138 formed integrallywith an inner wall of the outer cylindrical portion 135 and protrudingradially inwardly; a first inner cylindrical portion 139 providedintegrally at an inner end of the first annular portion 138 andextending in a direction perpendicular to the direction in which thefirst annular portion 138 extends (an axial direction); a second innercylindrical portion 140 situated inside the first inner cylindricalportion 139 and extending axially; and a second annular portion 141situated at the cover member 133 side and connecting the first andsecond inner cylindrical portions 139, 140 at one end. In this example,a major part of the second inner cylindrical portion 140 forms a bearingholder 142. The other end of the second inner cylindrical portion 140 isfitted to secure a cap (seal member) 143 in a sealing structure and thusclosed. In this example, the partition wall portion 136 and the cap 143combine to construct a waterproof structure that prevents a liquid fromgetting into a space S. A stator 144 and a printed circuit board 145described later are received in the space S enclosed by a part of theouter cylindrical portion 135, the cylindrical partition wall portion136, the bottom wall portion 137 and the cap 143.

As shown in FIG. 3, the cover member 133 has a hollow cover member body146 with its open end fused to the open end of the outer cylindricalportion 135 (FIG. 5) of the housing body 132, a cylindrical member 147axially extending from the center of the cover member body 146 to form aliquid inlet, and a cylindrical member 148 tangentially extending fromthe side of the cover member body 146 to form a liquid outlet.

Returning to FIG. 5, the stator 144 has a stator core 149 mounted on anouter periphery of the bearing holder 142, a synthetic resin slotinsulator 150 fitted to the stator core 149, and a plurality ofexcitation coils 151 wound on poles of the stator core 149 through theslot insulator 150. Leaders of the excitation coils 151 are connected toa plurality of conductive pins 152 secured to the slot insulator 150.The conductive pins 152 are fitted into connection through-holesprovided in the circuit board 145 that has an exciting current supplycircuit for supplying exciting currents to the excitation coils 151.

Inside the bearing holder 142, two bearings 154, 155 (in this example,ball bearings) that rotatably support a shaft 153 are fitted. These twobearings 154, 155 are inserted into the bearing holder 142 from openingsat both ends thereof.

A retainer 156 and a coil spring 157 are fitted over the end of theshaft 153 on the cap 143 side. The coil spring 157 is installed, beingcompressed between an inner race of the bearing 155 and the retainer156. In this example, the coil spring 157 and the retainer 156 togetherform a slip-off prevention mechanism. With this construction, nothingstands in the way of the liquid inflow into the space where an impellerrotates, which enhances the pump performance.

A rotating body 158 is secured to an end of the shaft 153 at the covermember 133 side. The rotating body 158 is made from a magneticallypermeable material and has a cylindrical peripheral wall portion 159 anda closing wall portion 160 formed integrally with the peripheral wallportion 159 so as to close one end of an inner space enclosed by theperipheral wall portion 159. The end of the shaft 153 is tightly fittedinto a through-hole formed in the center of the closing wall portion160. A plurality of rotary side magnetic poles 161 made from permanentmagnets are secured onto the inner surface of the peripheral wallportion 159 of the rotating body 158. An impeller 162 is secured to thetop of the closing wall portion 160 of the rotating body 158. Theimpeller 162 has a blade mounting portion 163 fixed to the closing wallportion 160 and a plurality of blades 164 integrally provided at thesurface of the blade mounting portion 163. In this example, a reduceddiameter portion 159 a is formed at one end of the peripheral wallportion 159 of the rotating body 158. An annular extension portion 165which snugly fits over the outer periphery of the reduced diameterportion 159 a is integrally formed at the outer peripheral portion ofthe blade mounting portion 163 of the impeller 162. In this motor-drivenpump, a rotor 166 is made of parts ranging from the rotating body 158 tothe extension portion 165. In this pump, the rotor 166, the impeller 162and the bearings 154, 155 are submerged in the coolant. When theimpeller 162 rotates, the pump draws in a liquid through the liquidinlet (147) and discharges it from the liquid outlet (148).

In this motor-driven pump 13, the stator core 144 is situated on theouter periphery of the bearing holder 142, and the rotor 166 rotatesoutside the stator core. This construction can reduce the axialdimension of the motor-driven pump 13 and can also enhance the pumpperformance by making the most of the inertia of the rotor 166. Further,in this construction, since the liquid gets into the interior of thebearing holder 142, heat from the stator 144 can also be releasedthrough the bearing holder 142 to the liquid flowing through theinterior of the pump. Further, because the liquid getting into thebearing holder 142 functions as a lubricant for the bearings 154, 155,there is no need to replenish the lubricant to the bearings 154, 155,which significantly extends the life of the motor-driven pump 13.

In this motor-driven pump 13, at least one liquid path 167 extendingalong the shaft 153 is formed between the inner peripheral surface ofthe bearing holder 142 and the outer peripheral surface of the twobearings 154, 155. In FIG. 5 only one liquid path 167 is shown. Theliquid path 167 allows the whole interior of the bearing holder 142,including the space formed between the two bearings 154, 155 in thebearing holder 142, to be completely filled with the flowing liquid. Theliquid path 167 can be formed by forming at least one groove extendingalong the shaft 153 in at least either the inner peripheral surface ofthe bearing holder 142 or the outer peripheral surface of the bearings154, 155.

One or more (in this case, four) through-holes 168 piercing therethroughin the thickness direction thereof to allow the coolant to flowtherethrough are formed on the closing wall portion 160 of the rotatingbody 158. Four through-holes 169 aligned with the four through-holes 168of the closing wall portion 160 are formed on the blade mounting portion163 of the impeller 162. Forming these through-holes 168, 169 ensures asmooth flow of liquid between the interior and the exterior of therotating body 158.

FIG. 6A is a cross-sectional view showing another example of amotor-driven pump 1013 used in the present invention. The motor-drivenpump 1013 has a smaller axial dimension than that of the precedingexample of the motor-driven pump 13 shown in FIG. 3 to FIG. 5. Regardingthose parts of this motor-driven pump 1013 that are identical inconstruction with the corresponding parts of the motor-driven pump 13shown in FIG. 3 to FIG. 5, the explanation of the parts is omitted hereby indicating each reference number added 1000 to the correspondingreference number shown in FIG. 3 to FIG. 5. In this motor-driven pump1013, three grooves 1167 continuously extending along a shaft 1153 areformed in that portion of the inner peripheral surface of a bearingholder 1142 which faces the outer peripheral surface of the bearings1154, 1155. These three grooves 1167 constitute liquid paths. The threegrooves 1167 are formed at equal intervals in the circumferentialdirection of the shaft 1153, as shown in FIG. 6B. This arrangement caneliminate a possibility that the presence of the three grooves 1167 maycause the centers of the bearings 1154, 1155 out of alignment with thecenter of the bearing holder 1142. The grooves 1167 extend along theshaft 1153 and have a narrow elongate shape, facing the outer peripheralsurface of the two bearings 1154, 1155. In this example, a housing body1132 is not provided with a bottom wall portion. A cap 1143 has anannular recess 1172 formed in the outer peripheral portion thereof, inwhich an O-ring 1173 is fitted to form a seal portion. The cap 1143 isattached with an end cover 1174 that engages the end of the bearingholder 1142. In other respects, the construction of the motor-drivenpump is essentially the same as that of the motor-driven pump shown inFIG. 3 to FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing still another example of amotor-driven pump 2013 used in the present invention. The motor-drivenpump 2013, as with the motor-driven pump shown in FIG. 6A, has a reducedaxial dimension when compared with the motor-driven pump 13 shown inFIG. 3 to FIG. 5. Regarding those parts of this motor-driven pump 2013that are identical in construction with the corresponding parts of themotor-driven pump 13 shown in FIG. 3 to FIG. 5, the explanation of theparts is omitted here by indicating each reference number added 2000 tothe corresponding reference number shown in FIG. 3 to FIG. 5. In thismotor-driven pump 2013, a blade mounting portion 2163 of an impeller2162 is provided with a cylindrical extended mounting portion 2163 athat extends along a peripheral wall portion 2159 of a rotating body2158. A plurality of blades 2164 may be formed so as to extendcontinuously from over the blade mounting portion 2163 to over thecylindrical extended mounting portion 2163 a. This arrangement can makethe most of the outer surface of the rotating body 2158 in forming longblades, thereby enhancing the performance of the motor-driven pump.

FIGS. 8A to 8D are a plan view, a front view, a left side view and abottom view of a radiator 7 which is used in a system configuration ofthe embodiment of FIG. 1. This radiator 7 includes ten liquid passages71 arranged in parallel in a vertical direction and bellows-likeradiation fins 72 attached to the outer surfaces of the liquid passages71. Two liquid tanks 73, 74 are connected with and communicate with bothends of the ten liquid passages 71, and arranged on either side of theten liquid passages 71, respectively. On the both sides, with respect tothe vertical arrangement direction of the ten liquid passages 71, areprovided motor-driven mounting brackets 75, 76. The motor-drivenmounting brackets 75, 76 are formed by stamping and bending a metalplate. They have a plurality of screw insertion projections 77 eachformed with a through-hole in which a mounting screw can be inserted.The motor-driven mounting brackets 75, 76 have a plurality of holes 78,79 as engaged portions respectively to which engaging pieces 56, 57 ofthe motor-driven fan 5 are fastened when fixing the fan 5. In thisradiator 7, the ten liquid passages 71 shown in FIG. 8B and theradiation fins 72 together constitute a heat dissipating portion 88.

The liquid tank 73 is provided with a cylindrical member 80 thatconstitutes a liquid inlet, and the liquid tank 74 with a cylindricalmember 81 constituting a liquid outlet. In this radiator 7, as shown inFIG. 9, chambers in the two tanks 73, 74 are each divided into threesub-chambers 82 a-82 c and 83 a-83 c by two partition walls 84 spaced inthe direction of the parallel arrangement of the ten liquid passages 71.In this example, the sub-chamber 82 a is communicably connected withupper two liquid passages 71 at one end; the sub-chamber 83 a iscommunicably connected with upper four liquid passages 71 at the otherend; the sub-chamber 82 b is communicably connected with third to sixthfour liquid passages 71 at one end; the sub-chamber 83 b is communicablyconnected with fifth to eighth four liquid passages 71 at the other end;the sub-chamber 82 c is communicably connected with seventh to tenthfour liquid passages 71 at one end; and the sub-chamber 83 c iscommunicably connected with ninth to tenth two liquid passages 71 at theother end. In other words, three sub-chambers 82 a-82 c and 83 a-83 c ineach of the two tanks 73, 74 and the ten liquid passages 71 areconnected with each other in such a manner that two liquid passages 71construct a winding liquid path between the liquid inlet (80) and theliquid outlet (81). This arrangement enables a predetermined amount ofliquid to be cooled in a relatively short period of time. It is alsopossible to connect a plurality of sub-chambers in the two tanks to aplurality of liquid passages to have only one liquid passage 71 serve asa liquid path winding between the liquid inlet and the liquid outlet.

The liquid path forming method adopted in this radiator 7 may beexpressed in the following generalized term. A chamber in each of thetwo liquid tanks 73, 74 is divided, in a direction of arrangement of theplurality of liquid passages 71, into m plus one (m is an integer of oneor more: three sub-chambers in this embodiment) sub-chambers 82 a-82 c,83 a-83 c by m (two partition walls in this embodiment) partition walls84. Then the sub-chambers 82 a-82 c, 83 a-83 c in each of the two liquidtanks and the plurality of liquid passages 71 are connected with eachother in such a manner that one or more liquid passages (two passages inthis embodiment) construct a winding liquid path between the liquidinlet 80 and the liquid outlet 81.

In this example, the two tanks 73, 74 are arranged so that thesub-chambers 82 a, 83 a are positioned at the upper end and thesub-chambers 82 c, 83 c are positioned at the lower end, respectively.The sub-chamber 83 a in the tank 74 is situated higher than thesub-chamber 82 a in the tank 73 and these sub-chambers are formed insuch a dimension and shape so as to allow a space 85 to be definedtherein that is not filled with the liquid. In this arrangement, the airthat may cause bubbles in the liquid stays in the space 85, effectivelypreventing the air from getting into the liquid to cause the bubbleswhich in turn causes reduced cooling efficiency. A top part of thesub-chamber 83 a in the tank 74 is attached with a coolant resupply cap86 for replenishing a coolant.

As shown in FIG. 10, it is also possible to adopt a known constructionin which the interiors of the two tanks 73, 74 are not divided bypartition walls.

FIG. 11 shows the structure of another radiator. Regarding FIG.11, theexplanation of the parts is omitted by adding 100 to the correspondingnumber shown in FIG. 9. In this radiator 107, the chamber in the liquidtank 173 is divided into three sub-chambers 182 a-182 c by two partitionwalls 184 spaced in the direction of the parallel arrangement of theeight liquid passages 171. The chamber in the other liquid tank 174 isdivided into two sub-chambers 183 a, 183 b by a partition wall 184spaced in the direction of the parallel arrangement of the eight liquidpassages 171. In this example, the sub-chamber 182 a is communicablyconnected with upper two liquid passages 171 at one end; the sub-chamber183 a is communicably connected with upper four liquid passages 171 atthe other end; the sub-chamber 182 b is communicably connected withthird to sixth four liquid passages 71 at one end; the sub-chamber 183 bis communicably connected with fifth to eighth four liquid passages 171at the other end; the sub-chamber 182 c is communicably connected withseventh to eighth two liquid passages 171 at one end; the liquid inlet(a cylindrical member 180) and the liquid outlet (a cylindrical member181) are provided in sub-chambers 182 a, 182 c respectively engagingpieces engaging pieces engaged portions engaging pieces engaged portionsengaging pieces engaging pieces.

The structure of sub-chambers of the radiator 107 may be expressed inthe following generalized term. A chamber in the one liquid tank 173 isdivided, in a direction of arrangement of the plurality of liquidpassages 171, into n plus one (n is an integer of two or more: threesub-chambers in this embodiment) sub-chambers 182 a-182 c by n (twopartition walls in this embodiment) partition walls 184. The otherliquid tank 174 is divided, in a direction of arrangement of theplurality of liquid passages 171, into n (two sub chambers in thisembodiment) sub chambers 183 a, 183 b by n-1 (one partition walls inthis embodiment) partition walls 184. Then the sub-chambers 183 a, 183 bin the two liquid tanksl73, 174 and the plurality of liquid passages 171are connected with each other in such a manner that one or more of theliquid passages (two passages in this embodiment) construct a windingliquid path winding between the liquid inlet 180 and the liquid outlet181.

FIGS. 12A to 12D are a front view, a left side view, a plan view and apartly cutaway front view of the motor-driven fan 5 used for air-coolingthe radiator 7. The motor-drive fan 5 has an air channel body 51, animpeller 52 and a motor 53. At one end, the air channel body 51 has asuction port 54 facing the front of the heat dissipating portion 88 ofthe radiator 7 shown in FIG. 8 and, at the other end, a discharge port55. The air channel body 51 has six engaging pieces 56, 57 integrallyformed with an outer peripheral portion on the side of the suction port54. The three engaging pieces 56 are so shaped that their front endportions are inserted and locked into three holes 79 provided, asengaged portions, at the mounting bracket 76 of the radiator 7. Thethree engaging pieces 57 are hook-shaped so that their front endportions are inserted and locked into three holes 78 provided, asengaged portions, at the mounting bracket 75 of the radiator 7. When themotor-driven fan 5 is to be mounted at the radiator 7, the engagingpieces 56 are inserted into the holes 79, and then the engaging pieces57 are inserted into the holes 78 as being transformed.

The impeller 52 has a cup-shaped member 58 rotated by the motor 53 andseven blades 59 integrally mounted at a peripheral wall portion of thecup-shaped member 58. Edges 60 of the seven blades 59 facing the frontof the heat dissipating portion 88 of the radiator 7 are slopinggradually away from the dissipating portion 88 as each of the edgesextends in a radially outward direction from the rotating center of theimpeller 52. This structure can reduce noise. In this motor-driven fan5, three webs 61 connecting the housing 62 of the motor 53 and the endportion of the air channel body 51 on the side of the discharge port 55are situated outside the discharge port 55. In other words, the endportion on the side of the discharge port is lower than the uppermostsurface of the housing 62 of the motor 53. This arrangement can enhancean air blowing performance and reduce noise when compared with aconstruction in which the webs 61 are situated on the inner side of thedischarge port 55.

The motor 53 rotates in such a direction that the impeller 52 is rotatedto draw in air through the suction port 54 and discharge air through thedischarge port 55. The construction that draws in air by themotor-driven fan 5 at the heat dissipating portion 88 of the radiator 7,as in this example, can draw out heated air through the heat dissipatingportion 88 without unnecessarily increasing the rotation speed of themotor-driven fan 5 even when the heat dissipating portion 88 of theradiator 7 is complicatedly constructed. This construction can alsoreduce noise.

With the present invention, even when the amount of heat generated byelectronic components increases, the heat sink can be positively cooledby means of a coolant, thereby significantly enhancing the coolingperformance when compared with a conventional construction in which theheat sink is cooled only by means of air.

Further, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, butvarious variations and modifications may be made without departing fromthe scope of the present invention.

1. A radiator used in an electronic component cooling apparatus,comprising: a plurality of liquid passages arranged side by side;radiation fins attached to outer surfaces of the liquid passages; andtwo liquid tanks arranged each on either side of the plurality of liquidpassages and communicably connected to both ends of the plurality ofliquid passages; wherein one of the two liquid tanks is provided with aliquid inlet and the other liquid tank is provided with a liquid outlet;wherein a chamber in each of the two liquid tanks is divided, in adirection of arrangement of the plurality of liquid passages, into mplus one (m is an integer of one or more) sub-chambers by m partitionwalls; and wherein the sub-chambers in each of the two liquid tanks andthe plurality of liquid passages are connected with each other in such amanner that one or more of the liquid passages construct a windingliquid path between the liquid inlet and the liquid outlet.
 2. Theradiator as defined in claim 1, wherein the sub-chamber locateduppermost in the other of the two liquid tanks has such shape and sizethat allow a space to be formed therein that is positioned higher thanthe sub-chamber located uppermost in the one of the two liquid tanks andthat is not filled with the liquid.
 3. A radiator used in an electroniccomponent cooling apparatus, comprising: a plurality of liquid passagesarranged side by side; radiation fins attached to outer surfaces of theliquid passages; and two liquid tanks arranged one on each side of theplurality of liquid passages and communicably connected to both ends ofthe plurality of liquid passages; wherein one of the two liquid tanks isprovided with a liquid inlet and a liquid outlet; wherein a chamber inthe one of the two liquid tanks is divided, in a direction ofarrangement of the plurality of liquid passages, into n plus one (n isan integer of two or more) sub-chambers by n partition walls; wherein achamber in the other of the two liquid tanks is divided, in a directionof arrangement of the plurality of liquid passages, into n sub-chambersby n minus one partition walls; and wherein the sub-chambers in each ofthe two liquid tanks and the plurality of liquid passages are connectedwith each other in such a manner that one or more of the liquid passagesconstruct a winding liquid path between the liquid inlet and the liquidoutlet.
 4. The radiator as defined in claim 3, wherein the sub-chamberlocated uppermost in the other of the two liquid tanks has such shapeand size that allow a space to be formed therein that is positionedhigher than the sub-chamber located uppermost in the one of the twoliquid tanks and that is not filled with the liquid.